ICICI Pru Enhanced Dynamic Equity
Our view on the fund, the AMC, the strategy, the performance & the investment team.
IME's Review of ICICI Pru Enhanced Dynamic Equity
| Fund Rating | Strategy Rating | Performance Rating |
|---|---|---|
Upgrade | Upgrade | Upgrade |
View on the Fund
ICICI Pru's Enhanced Dynamic Equity Fund, aims to deliver long-term capital appreciation with lower-risk, by following a dynamic asset allocation strategy (long-bias long-short) that aims to capture upsides in Rising Markets, limit downsides in falling markets and generate absolute returns in sideways markets. The fund can be considered for investors seeking to partipate in the higher-returns of equity markets, but want to reduce the risk of capital losses in weak markets.
Strategy
Long-bias Long-short
Fund's Strategy View
The strategy is structured around three integrated strategy buckets. (a) First, a fundamentally driven long-only equity portfolio built using ICICI’s BMV (Business–Management–Valuation) framework to identify high-quality companies. (b) Second, a dynamic equity exposure overlay, where net equity is actively adjusted using an internal market valuation model—raising exposure in undervalued markets and reducing it when valuations are stretched. (c) Third, active derivative strategies (index and stock derivatives) are employed for hedging, tactical positioning, and alpha generation. This framework aims to capture a meaningful share of market upside while limiting downside during corrections, resulting in materially lower volatility versus pure equity exposure. Net directional equity exposure is actively managed and has historically remained in a moderate band rather than being fully invested at all times Net equity exposure typically stays in a ~30–60% band (historic).
Fund Performance
The funds aim to use shorts tactically to reduce portfolio volatility, downside protection during turbulent market conditions. Consistent ability to take such calls is key for low volatility returns over time.
Trailing Performance
| 1yr | 3yr | 5yr | Since Inception | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ICICI Pru Enhanced Dynamic Equity | 7.7 | 16.8 | 15.5 |
Performance as of: 31-Jan-26 | Inception Date: 07-Oct-22 | Performance are post-fees, pre-taxes. Global funds denominated in USD or fund currency.
Investment team
Nimesh Shah | 4-star rated FM
CEO | 32 yrs Experience | 19 yrs at current firm
Past Experience: ICICI Bank
Nimesh Shah joined the Company in July 2007 as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. He has been instrumental in laying a foundation for building a superior asset management firm. He has over 30 years of experience in the banking and financial services industry. Prior to his current role, he was serving the ICICI Group as a Senior General Manager at ICICI Bank where he held several key roles in project finance, corporate banking and international banking functions. He is also a Director of the Mutual Fund industry trade body AMFI and a Chartered Accountant by qualification.
Rahul Rai | 4-star rated FM
Head RE | 35 yrs Experience | 15 yrs at current firm
Past Experience: SUN-Apollo Real Estate Advisors, E&Y
Rahul Rai joined the AMC in November 2010. With over 24 years of experience spanning Real Estate Investments, Corporate Finance and Tax & Regulatory assignments, he leads the Real Estate business practice at the AMC. Prior to joining the AMC, Rahul worked with SUN-Apollo Real Estate Advisors as Principal with the responsibility over the entire life cycle of the investment. He has also worked at Ernst and Young where he headed the Real Estate transactions practice and prior to that has worked with Arthur Andersen. Within the real estate sector, Rahul has exposure across all product classes and cities and has strong relationships with leading developers. He is a Chartered Accountant and Cost Accountant. He is a graduate in Commerce from Mumbai University.
Shekar Daga | 4-star rated FM
Head Pvt Capital | 27 yrs Experience | 5 yrs at current firm
Past Experience: Aion Capital, ICICI Bank
Shekhar Daga is the Head- Private Capital at ICICI Prudential AMC. In a career spanning over two decades, Shekhar has handled entire gamut of investment management across corporate lending, structured finance, private equity, special situation and distressed debt. Previously, he was a partner at AION Capital and served on the board of multiple portfolio companies including Clix Capital. He was earlier with ICICI Bank in their Structured finance and distressed debt group. Shekhar is a rank holder CA from Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.
Paul Parampreet | 3-star rated FM
Head - Long Short | 21 yrs Experience | 2 yrs at current firm
Past Experience: Franklin Templeton (PM), Edelweiss (Associate Director)
Paul Parampreet joined ICICI Pru AMC in May 2024 and currently serves as a Fund Manager for Alternatives, where he is responsible for investment research and strategy design for AIF portfolios. He brings over 15 years of experience in financial services. Prior to ICICI, he worked as a Client Portfolio Manager at Franklin Templeton across the UK and India, managing multi-asset client portfolios and advising institutional investors on asset allocation. Earlier, he served as Associate Director – Strategic Investments at Edelweiss Group and was Vice President and Head of Equities at Edelweiss Asset Management, overseeing multiple equity mutual fund strategies. Paul holds a PGDM from IIM Calcutta and a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from IIT Kharagpur.
IME's Review of ICICI Pru Alternatives
| AMC Rating | Pedigree Rating | Team Rating | Philosophy Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
Upgrade | Upgrade | Upgrade | Upgrade |
View on AMC
ICICI Pru Alternatives, part of the ICICI Group, has developed a formidable position for itself in the Alternatives space - with a presence across Real Estate, High Yield Debt, Long-Short & Unlisted funds. While all AMC's that are part of larger financial groups do face the risk of team churn, ICICI Alternatives represents one of the better Alternative brands to be working with, and their size & pedigree does help them attract high-quality talent in case of the departure of any of their senior members.
AMC's Pedigree
ICICI Pru Alternatives is amongst the oldest alternative managers in India, and has built up a strong presence for itself across a wide range of Alternative fund categories. it is amongst the more pedigreed Alternative managers working out of India.
AMC Team
Rahul Rai (Head, RE) comes with 3 decades of RE experience and corp banking + Nimesh Shah (3 decades of banking) + Shekar Daga (Head, Pvt Capital) with 2 decades of experience across corp lending, structured fin, PE, special situation and distressed debt
Investment Philosophy
Large Alternative AMCs have distinct investment philosophy for various offerings they come up over time. The primary focus is the value-add in the alternatives space for investors.
AMC Background
ICICI Prudential Alternatives AMC is a leading asset manager with deep expertise in real estate, unlisted, high-yield and long-short strategies via its AIFs. It is backed by ICICI Pru AMC, which is the top-3 asset managers in India, known for managing mutual fund assets.
Investment Philosophy
Large Alternative AMCs have distinct investment philosophy for various offerings they come up over time. The primary focus is the value-add in the alternatives space for investors.
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